Bashar Wali, president of Provenance Hotels, will depart the company, effective May 29. Upon his departure, Katherine Durant, current chairman and CEO, will become president, and company founder Gordon Sondland will become chairman. Sondland served as U.S. ambassador to the European Union from 2018 until February 2020.
Wali will remain involved with Provenance both as a senior adviser to the company and as a shareholder.
Portland, Oregon-based Provenance also welcomed Ernest Glidden as chief financial officer. Glidden previously served as a senior vice president, operations finance, for Caesars Entertainment Corp., and as a regional vice president, finance, for Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Ralph Aruzza, former executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer at Belmond, and vice president for sales and marketing at Rosewood Hotels, also joined the company as chief marketing officer.
Finally, Provenance promoted Klaudio Simic to senior vice president of operations. Simic joined Provenance in 2000.
Capella Singapore
Sherona Lau is executive assistant manager, sales and marketing, at Capella Singapore. The Hong Kong native has more than 20 years of global experience in the hospitality industry. Lau started her career as a management trainee at the Yinhe Dynasty InterContinental Hotel in Chengdu, China. She then joined The Peninsula Hotels, where she spent more than 13 years in various positions in sales and marketing at The Peninsula Bangkok in Bangkok, Thailand, The Peninsula flagship hotel in Hong Kong, and later as regional director of marketing for The Peninsula Hotels, covering the Southern China, Hong Kong and Taiwan markets. She’s also worked for brands including The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. and Mandarin Oriental Hotel Co.
Alma, Cam Ranh, Vietnam
Austria-born Herbert Laubichler-Pichler is general manager in charge of opening Alma, a beachfront resort in Cam Ranh, Vietnam. Laubichler-Pichler’s work in Vietnam goes back almost 14 years and includes management roles in acclaimed properties such as Anam in Cam Ranh, Ho Chi Minh City’s Reverie Saigon and Nam Hai in Danang. His experience in Asia also includes overseeing the opening of Raffles Hainan in Hainan, China, working for Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines, and managing General Hotel Management properties in Malaysia.
IntercityHotel, Germany
IntercityHotel appointed directors for properties in Germany and Switzerland. Candy Marth is general manager at IntercityHotel Rostock in Rostock, Germany. Marth has worked for the hotel group for 20 years, fulfilling various roles in management and human resources, including time spent as head of events at the IntercityHotel Stralsund in Stralsund, Germany. Marth replaces Katrin Schissler, who is taking over as general manager at the IntercityHotel Berlin Hauptbahnhof in Berlin, Germany. Steffi Wisotzky, formerly general manager, IntercityHotel Berlin Hauptbahnhof, is now general manager at the Steigenberger Airport Hotel Berlin. IntercityHotel also named Sandra Wigger general manager of the IntercityHotel Zurich Airport in Zurich, Switzerland. Wigger has been responsible for the property’s pre-opening stage since March. Wigger previously was rooms division manager at Steigenberger Bellerive au Lac, also in Zurich.
Blue Diamond Resorts
Jürgen Stütz is senior vice president, sales, marketing and distribution, at Blue Diamond Resorts. Stütz joins Blue Diamond with more than 29 years in the luxury hospitality industry. Stütz began his career as director of sales and marketing at Hotel Melia Bavaro and Hotel Paradisus Punta Cana, both in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Since then, he’s held numerous executive sales and marketing positions at hospitality companies including Sol Melia, Linder Hotels & Resorts, LTI-International Hotels and Melia Hotels International. Most recently, Stütz was chief commercial officer at Decameron Hotels & Resorts where he oversaw a team of 730 members across 34 hotels and resorts in nine countries, generating more than US$480 million in annual revenue.